Based on preliminary Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that the U.S. imported a total of 3,620,000 net tons (NT) of steel in December, including 2,941,000 NT of finished steel (down 2.0 percent and up 0.1 percent, respectively, vs. November final data).
Full year 2014 total and finished steel imports are 44,320,000 and 33,733,000 NT, respectively, up 38 percent and 36 percent. Finished steel import market share was an estimated 28 percent for 2014.
Key finished steel products with a significant import increase in December compared to November are wire rods (up 36 percent), line pipe (up 18 percent), standard pipe (up 13 percent), hot rolled bars (up 11 percent) and plates in coils (up 10 percent). Major products with significant import increases in 2014 vs. the prior year include plates in coils (up 90 percent), cold rolled sheets (up 88 percent), wire rods (up 85 percent), cut lengths plates (up 83 percent), heavy structural shapes (up 60 percent), sheets and strip hot dipped galvanized (up 60 percent), hot rolled sheets (up 46 percent), sheets and strip all other metallic coatings (up 42 percent), tin plate (up 30 percent) and mechanical tubing (up 28 percent).
In December, the largest volumes of finished steel imports from offshore were from South Korea (418,000 NT, down 11 percent vs. November final), China (217,000 NT, down 16 percent), Japan (185,000 NT, up 20 percent), Russia (181,000 NT, up 415 percent) and Germany (164,000 NT, up 38 percent). In 2014, some of the largest offshore suppliers were South Korea (5,448,000 NT, up 47 percent), China (3,187,000 NT, up 68 percent), Turkey (2,196,000 NT, up 82 percent) and Russia (1,418,000 NT, up 489 percent).
Published in the March 2015 Edition of American Recycler News
